Vampire Nights
by DarkAnbuFairy15
Summary: Sakura has been claimed by the vampire Sasori; she is his and his alone, and she doesn't want to belong to anyone else. But Sasori has to leave for a mission with the Akatsuki and leave Sakura alone in Konoha, meaning his claim on her will fade. What will happen when another certain vampire takes a liking to her, and she's not sure if she minds? SakuSaso & SakuSasu
1. Chapter 1

**Ello! I started posting my story "Vampire's Discretion" that I wrote like five years ago, and at first I was only fixing some parts that needed to be better and my grammar and such. But I started reading the whole original document and…I couldn't even handle it. IT WAS SO BAD. I can't even stand to fix it anymore—so I am rewriting it completely! This is going to be it, except obviously I changed the title because I don't like the other title xD This chapter is completely different and there are different details now and…I'm excited to write this one instead of attempting to fix that piece of shit other story! YAY! If you would be so kind as to write a review and follow/favorite, that would make me a very happy camper :) I accept ideas; those are lovely! Please no flames either. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this chapter ^_^ ~~Anbu-Chan**

_DISCLAIMER!: I do not own Naruto._

She woke up in the middle of the night to the shriek of her mother. Startled, she hopped out of bed in her soft, yellow, bunny-printed pajamas onto the cold floor. In the back of her mind she wished that she had worn socks to bed like her mother had told her to, but she'd been too stubborn and refused. She stood silently in her small room, surrounded with pale pink walls adorned with picture frames of flowers. Her glass windows were bordered with white curtains and shined moonlight onto her ruffled, white twin bed.

She crept over to her white dresser and snatched her favorite clip from the top, clutching it tightly. The clip had a larger cherry blossom at the end, encrusted with sparkling pink jewels; down the clip were diamonds in the shape of swirls. Her mother had bought it for her at the spring festival a few years before, and she always found comfort in it when her mother and father were away for a business trip.

She looked at her flower shaped alarm clock; it read 11:26. She knew that her daddy would be home soon and would fix everything; he was out with friends then, celebrating his best friend's 32nd birthday. Perhaps her mommy had simply seen a large spider in bed with her and had screamed with terror. The little seven-year-old knew better, though. She knew that it wasn't a spider that had caused her mommy to scream in fear like that; she knew because her mommy was brave and didn't scream over little things like that. Suddenly the small girl wished that there would be some noise that would alert her to what was happening, but she couldn't hear anything coming from her mommy and daddy's room down the hall. It was the silence that scared her the most. Surely if her mommy was all right, she would hear the reassuring footsteps. But she didn't.

She clipped the flower clip into her soft pink hair and silently darted to her closet, crawling inside and hiding behind all the clothes. She was afraid. She wished that her daddy would hurry up and come home to help mommy, because she knew that mommy was in trouble.

As if by miracle, she heard the front door close. She scrambled to her feet and out of the closet, going to press her ear against her bedroom door so she could hear what was happening more clearly. She heard her daddy's footsteps approach his bedroom, then she heard him shout. Gunshots rang throughout the house, causing the little girl to jump. She flung her bedroom door open only to see that her daddy was not in the hallway. She dashed down the hallway to peer into her parents' bedroom. She was appalled by what she saw.

Her mommy lay limp on the bed with her emerald eyes wide and her mouth open, her long hair strewn around her, and her skin pale. The most striking things were the gaping holes in her neck, dripping blood onto the pale gray blankets of the bed. The little girl forced her own emerald eyes away from her mommy to look at her daddy, who brandished a fierce-looking sword and was deep in combat with a mysterious and terrifying man. She couldn't see the stranger's face, but she knew that he was a vampire from his stance and the fact that her mommy had a bite on her throat.

Her parents had told her at a young age that vampires existed. Everyone knew about vampires, but some vampires were better at hiding it than others so sometimes one could be in the presence of a vampire and not even know. The little girl's mother worked as a salesperson that traveled; she knew about vampires and knew how to determine who was and was not a vampire, but that was the extent of what she knew. The little girl's father, on the other hand, was a vampire hunter. He traveled to kill certain vampires who had gone crazy and went on killing sprees; he was trained in the art of slaying and was one of the best of the hunters. Vampires could be good or bad, the little girl's parents had told her. If they killed people mercilessly, then obviously they were bad and had to be exterminated. There were also the kind that didn't go on killing sprees; they still killed humans, but that was inevitable and they weren't always hunted. The hunters were more concerned with the mass killers.

The small pink-haired girl's father noticed that she was standing in the doorway in shock, taking the scene with wide eyes. Fear instantly flashed across his face as he knew that his precious daughter was in danger. He yelled at her sternly, "Go, Sakura! You need to run."

Sakura stood in spot, still unable to move. She couldn't believe that her mother was dead, and that it was the doing of a vampire. She'd never seen a vampire, so in a way, even though she'd been informed that they did exist, she almost thought of them as a fairy tale still. She was snapped out of her reverie when the vampire lunged at her and her father intercepted the vampire's attack.

"Sakura," Her father grunted, holding back the vampire. "You need to run."

This time, Sakura obeyed. She whipped around and sprinted out of the house as quickly as she could. She sensed that the vampire her father was battling was a very strong one, and she wasn't sure how long her father could hold the vampire off. She turned around once she was a fair distance away and saw that her house was beginning to set on fire. It was probably a last defense by her father. The yellow shutters of the house began to burn, the pale red roof also beginning to catch fire as well. Sakura stood there, dumbfounded, just watching her home burn. She felt tears finally begin to drip down her cheeks as she realized that her old life was over. In a way, she wanted to go back and burn with her home. She had nowhere else to go and no one else to go to. Her family lived in the middle of a beautiful, lush forest, but suddenly the forest was now shrouded in the darkness of the night and it was a lot less welcoming than she was ever used to.

There were no stars in the sky, but rather clouds. A storm was coming, and she knew that that would put out the fire in her home. Sakura turned around again to face the vast forest before her, not knowing which way to go or where to start. She stumbled forward into the thick and tall trees, hoping to find a place of shelter before she let her young self break down. Her mother and father had always taught her that she needed to be strong. And she wanted to make them proud, especially now that they weren't here. So she marched forward in her search for shelter, hoping that up from heaven they were happy that she was trying.

* * *

Sakura woke up shivering in a small cavern that she found far away from her home. Her small feet were dirty and cut up, and she wished that she'd had a coat and shoes. If she'd thought about what may have been happening in her parent's bedroom, perhaps she would have dressed appropriately for a getaway. But she hadn't predicted what would happen in her parent's bedroom, and so here she was, tired and cold and hungry and most of all, alone. She sat up and felt tears prick at her eyes again as she remembered what happened the previous night. She decided that if her situation was as hopeless as it seemed, there was no point in trying not to cry. So she let the sob shake her entire body as she mourned the loss of her old life, and probably her dim and short future.

Sakura didn't move from the cave for a while, until she heard footsteps somewhere close outside the cavern that she hid in. She crept forward to the mouth of the cavern, staying close to the wall so she would be less likely to be spotted. If it was the vampire, she would gladly let it kill her too so she could join her parents in the sky. If it was anyone else, then perhaps they could have mercy on her and help her.

She stared out into the green forest, awaiting the sight of someone. She knelt there for several minutes before finally something happened.

"What are you looking at?" A quiet voice asked. Sakura fell back onto her butt when suddenly a young boy with red hair appeared at the edge of the tree line, looking straight at Sakura. He appeared so suddenly, and knew right where she was. Sakura had wanted the vampire from her house to kill her so she could join her parents, but she hadn't expected another vampire to show up. She knew that this was a different vampire than the one at her home because this one was young and had a smaller build. But either way, he was a vampire and was likely to be dangerous. No human could have just appeared in those trees so fast, especially when Sakura was watching the trees like a hawk.

"V-Vampire…!" Sakura sputtered, crab-walking backwards to put more distance between them. Not that it would have mattered anyway, no distance could stop a vampire from getting to someone.

Even from the distance she was at, she could see the boy furrow his brows at her. He questioned her suspiciously, "How do you know that I'm a vampire?"

Sakura shook her head, refusing to answer. The boy began to walk forward slowly, hesitantly. Fear-induced chills shot up Sakura's spine, making her want to cry out. She didn't want to face another vampire, she wasn't brave enough. Her parents had taught her to be strong but she wasn't strong enough to overcome her fears. She couldn't speak as the boy stopped walking at the mouth of the cavern. His red hair was beautiful, as were his teal eyes, Sakura admitted. She felt her cheeks flush as she realized that she was admiring the beauty of a vampire.

Sensing her distress, the vampire boy told her, "I'm not going to hurt you."

For some odd reason, Sakura believed that he meant it. She wondered if vampires had the ability to control emotions and thoughts, but she wasn't sure. She felt herself relax slightly, but she still didn't trust this vampire. Still seeing that she wasn't responding, the boy tried again to talk to her.

"My name is Sasori," The boy introduced himself. "I'm ten years old. What is your name?"

"S-Sakura…Sakura Haruno," Sakura responded hesitantly. This boy didn't put off any suspicious or malevolent vibes. Maybe he would help her. Seeing that she was now starting to answer, Sasori knelt down so he could look her in the eyes. Once again Sakura found herself admiring how pretty his eyes appeared. He wore a black t-shirt and tan khakis, his feet bore black tennis shoes; he didn't appear to be dangerous, but rather his simplicity was a comfort.

"What are you doing all the way out here in the middle of the woods, Sakura?" Sasori asked curiously, taking in her scratched and dirty form.

Figuring that she had nothing to lose anymore, Sakura explained to him what happened. She told him more than he'd asked for, finding herself rambling on and on. She told him about her mother and father, and how her father was a vampire slayer—she noted that he cringed slightly when she mentioned that detail. She told him how she heard her mother scream and how afraid she was; she told him about the vampire that killed her mother; that she saw her father fighting the vampire off and telling her to leave. She described how it felt to know that she left her house burning to the ground behind her. And Sasori listened silently. He'd ended up sitting down, and listened to every word that came out of Sakura's mouth. When Sakura was finished with her tale, fresh tears fell down her face again. Sasori scooted towards her and put his arms around her, hugging her. She let him.

"It's going to be okay, Sakura," Sasori assured her sweetly. "That vampire that killed your parents was obviously an evil one, but I'm not. Do you believe me?"

Sakura nodded, figuring that if he were an evil vampire then he would have killed her on sight. "I believe you," She whispered, finding comfort in his warmth.

Sasori pulled away from Sakura and turned her to face him, gazing seriously into her eyes, "Sakura, it would kill me to leave you here like this. Would you…like to come and stay with me? Unless you have somewhere else to go, of course…"

"I have nowhere else to go," Sakura told him, sadness creeping into her tone.

"Then come with me," Sasori insisted. "I can protect you and keep you happy. You'll have a place to live, food to eat…"

"But will you end up eating me?" Sakura asked incredulously. It was a serious question, one she was truly afraid of. Sasori took her hand and held it firmly, shaking his head.

"I understand your fear, but no, I will most certainly not eat you," Sasori assured her. His sincerity made Sakura smile, warming Sasori's heart. He wanted to see her smile more. "Do you want to come with me?"

"I do," Sakura finally decided. "It would make me very happy to come with you."

* * *

Many years have passed since that fateful day. Sakura, at age fifteen—eight years after the murder of her parents—stretched out in the comfortable bed that she slept in. She opened her bright emerald eyes and the first thing she saw was the blood red ceiling. She sighed and squirmed to sit up from her comfortable position, running her hands along the white bed cover with red lace along the edges. The bed had four wooden posts at the corners, and white curtains canopied the bed and made it more secluded from the rest of her room. To the right of her bed was a rather large, pale-wooded desk that held a pink desk light, her pale pink laptop, textbooks, and other school supplies. To the left of the bed was a large cherry wood dresser filled with her beautiful wardrobe. On the last wall, across from the foot of her bed, was a tan bookshelf filled from top to bottom with books. Sakura could spend all day reading, and sometimes during summers or on weekends, she did.

Sakura picked up her white smart-phone and saw that there was a text from Sasori. Meet me by the river, it read. Sakura smiled, loving it when they went to the river. Going to the river meant a trip to town and then swimming later; both were things that Sakura enjoyed immensely, particularly in the presence of Sasori.

Sakura stepped out of bed onto the hardwood floors wearing purple knee high socks, black exercise shorts, and a red t-shirt. She went to the door that was beside her bookshelf and went inside, flipping on the light. She walked across white tiled floors to the big mirror, grabbing her brush off of the white countertop flecked with pink. She brushed her own pink hair that reached down to her lower back, pulling the gnarls out. She proceeded to brush her teeth and put on minimal makeup before turning back to her bedroom to change out of her pajamas.

It was summer and Sakura wasn't in school. She loved being to be home with Sasori all day and not having a care in the world. She went to her dresser and pulled out white shorts with a black belt and a dark gray tank top. After she was changed she put on her white sandals, grabbed her gray and white shoulder bag and phone, and proceeded out the door.

Sakura skipped through the house that she and Sasori lived in together, exiting out of the French doors at the back of the house and onto their luxurious deck filled with tables and chairs and everything. Sakura never asked what exactly Sasori had to do to obtain his money, but so long as he wasn't hurt she supposed it didn't matter. Sasori was in an organization of vampires called the Akatsuki, and sometimes he would be called away on missions. She didn't know who was in the Akatsuki or what they did, but she didn't really want to know. She knew that a lot of the vampires in the Akatsuki were what her parents considered to be bad vampires and that their names were on the Hunters' lists. Sasori's name was also probably on the list just by association, which is why Sakura had previously tried to convince Sasori to quit. Sasori had refused and said that he had entered the organization by blood and there was no way that he could ever quit, but not to worry because there was no way that he would ever let a Hunter take him away from her.

Sakura didn't want to think about what it would be like not to have Sasori in her life anymore—the thought alone scared her to death and made her want to die. Sakura and Sasori had been living together for eight years so far. Sakura really liked Sasori because he was sweet and funny and smart and amazing to be around; when she reached about age 11, though, she began to feel something deeper than simply affection. Sasori and Sakura began to officially call themselves a couple when Sakura was 13 and Sasori was 16. It had been over a two years since they were together. Sakura loved Sasori with all of her heart and knew that he loved her too.

Sakura walked through the forest towards the river where Sasori had said to meet him. It was different to walk through this forest than the forest she'd always walked when she was younger and before her parents had been killed. She preferred this forest.

When Sakura arrived at the river, Sasori was not present. She looked around to see where he was hiding, but she could not find him.

"Sasori?" Sakura called out suspiciously. "I know you're out there. You'd better not try to scare me."

When there was no response, Sakura huffed, sending her bangs away from her eyes. She began to wander out more towards the river when there was a shift in the air behind her. Arms circled around her waist and she knew immediately who they belonged to. Warm breath tickled her ear, causing her to giggle.

"You know, you're really cute when you're frustrated," Sasori murmured into her ear. Sakura started to protest indignantly when Sasori turned her around and pressed his lips against hers. She considered pushing him away and telling him that he shouldn't sneak up on her but decided that she'd much rather be kissing him. Just as their kiss was about to deepen, Sasori pulled away.

"What are you doing?" Sakura demanded, her cheeks flushed. Now she was really frustrated.

Sasori smirked, "Keeping you on your toes. Now let's go into town." He grabbed her hand tried to pull her forward but she remained firmly in her spot.

"I don't know if I want to go into town with you after that," Sakura raised her chin and looked at him defiantly.

Sasori smirked again and put his lips next to her ear, whispering huskily, "There will be more later." With that promise, Sakura allowed Sasori to lead her into town. They resided near the Rain village, and Sakura thought it was probably the most beautiful place she'd ever seen. All of the houses were gorgeous, they had flowers everywhere and the people were very kind.

Sakura attended school in the Rain village with other humans. The population of vampires in this village was low, which is why Sasori chose this location. Sakura had friends here and was on the dance team at the high school. Her friends on the team didn't like to read like Sakura did, so she couldn't always relate, but that didn't matter. She loved her friends. A lot of the boys sought after her, but knew that Sasori was her boyfriend so stayed away.

Sasori was at the high school as well, but being a vampire made it very easy for him. He was able to remember things easily so he had phenomenal grades; although he wasn't a geeky person, so naturally all the girls wanted him like all the boys wanted Sakura. Both Sakura and Sasori have both had their fair share of jealousies.

In broad daylight, the people of the Rain village were happy and bustling around socially. When night fell, however, everyone stayed indoors. Even though the vampire population wasn't high here, the people still feared the vampires. Each village is different when it comes to their views of vampires. Some villages thought that vampires couldn't come out in the sunlight, like the Rain village, so they were happy in the daytime and fearful at night. Some villages knew that vampires could come out in the daytime, and because some of those villages had fewer Hunters to protect them, a lot of their citizens stayed in their homes in fear. Some villages had more protection, more Hunters, so people were more willing to stay out later at night because of the protection that the Hunters offered.

Sasori had taken Sakura to the villages where the people had less protection but knew that vampires could be out in the sun. Those villages were sad because what would have been busy and beautiful streets were dull; people stayed indoors and the people that were outside were constantly looking around in fear.

Vampires could come out into the sunlight and would not burn to ash. They needed to drink human blood in order to remain strong in the sunlight; so if a vampire hadn't fed in a while then they would be weaker in the sunlight. If the vampire was starved, then the sunlight would even be painful. Vampires were naturally stronger and faster than humans; they possessed better looks, although that didn't mean that some humans weren't stunning either, like Sakura. Vampires were smarter than humans, simply for the fact that their minds allowed them to memorize things quicker than any human ever could. Their sight, smelling abilities, and hearing were much more advanced than a human's.

Vampires were just like humans: There were differences among every one of them. Some vampires killed their victim when they drank blood while some vampires spared the victim. When a vampire bit the victim, there were three things that the vampire could do. First and most obviously, he could drink the blood. Second, he could change the human into a vampire if he chose to do so. And third, he could mark the human, claiming the human as his.

Sometimes when a vampire marks a human, it's just so the human can be a slave to them or something. A vampire could also mark a human when that vampire was in love with the human. The mark was an imprint on the human's soul and aura, and there was also a physical mark left when a human was marked. On the inside of the human's left wrist, whatever symbol the vampire's clan was would appear. No other vampire was allowed to touch the human after the human is marked because it was like breaking a law. The vampire had a claim on the person; the person belonged to the vampire for whatever reason the vampire chose.

Sakura had not yet been marked by Sasori, but she knew that one day he would mark her.

The sun was bright and warm as Sakura and Sasori walked through the Rain village, shopping for fruits and vegetables and meats. Both Sakura and Sasori were often greeted by classmates; they smiled and chatted with whoever wanted to. Once Sasori had both arms full with bags of goodies, they headed back towards their home. Sasori sat in a chair in the kitchen and watched Sakura put the foods in their designated spots.

"I need to go change into my bathing suit," Sakura said when she turned around after shutting the fridge. Sasori nodded and stood up, heading to his own bedroom to change. "I'll meet you down there."

Sakura entered her bedroom and closed the door quietly behind her. She strode to her dresser and pulled out her favorite bathing suit, heading to the bathroom to change. Once she finished, she examined herself in the mirror. She wore white bottoms with gold strings tied at the sides and a white top that tied around her neck and had gold on the edges. She'd braided her beautiful pink hair into two braids, as well. In all, she felt really good. She felt confident about her tan and petite body. She hurried out of the bathroom, grabbing a purple towel with cats on it.

Sakura took her sweet time on the way to the river, deciding to make Sasori wait due to his actions earlier in the day. The sun was setting and accentuated how beautiful and lush the forest was. The leaves on the trees were big and deep green; the trunks were different shades of brown. The forest floor was littered with a few twigs and leaves, and thankfully wasn't painful on Sakura's bare feet. Colorful flowers bloomed in patches all throughout the forest.

When Sakura arrived at the river, she saw Sasori this time. He was sitting on a log on the edge of the river with his back to Sakura. Even though she knew that he was aware that she was there—he heard her coming and could more than likely smell her now—she walked as quietly as she could until she was right behind him. She wrapped her arms around his neck from behind and pressed herself against his back.

"Hello," She greeted cheerily, kissing the back of his neck.

He spun around swiftly and in an instant was holding Sakura up in the air, with his hands underneath her arms. He twirled around slowly and her feet drifted around in midair. Sakura demanded that he set her down but was giggling, so he knew she wasn't mad or anything. When Sasori set Sakura down on the ground he was a good foot taller than she was. They weren't touching but there was still electricity in the air from their proximity. Sasori wore black swim trunks; his chest was bare. Looking at his figure made Sakura's heart race—saying that Sasori was sexy was an understatement. He had beautifully sculpted abs and strong arms that she wanted to hold her.

"Hello to you, too," Sasori greeted, taking each of her hands in his own. "You look beautiful."

Sakura's cheeks tinted a slight pink at his compliment. "Thank you," She murmured as she stepped closer to him and put her hands on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her even closer to him. Sakura couldn't imagine anything more perfect than this; she was standing in a beautiful forest next to an amazing river, the weather was perfect and the sunset made the mood more romantic, and best of all, she was with the most attractive and loving man on this planet. Her true love. She didn't think that you could find your true love when you were fourteen, but Sakura didn't think it could get any better than this. Except it did.

Sakura raised her head to look into Sasori's eyes and he crashed his mouth down onto hers. She snaked her arms around his neck and tangled her fingers in his hair. He lowered his arms down to her lower back, pulling her even closer, if it was possible. The kiss started slow, but then it was obvious that both parties wanted more. Sasori slid his tongue across Sakura's lower lip and she complied eagerly, opening her mouth to allow his tongue entrance. Sakura tried to battle but lost quickly; Sasori's tongue explored her mouth, leaving no crevasse untouched. When they both needed air, Sasori pulled away and kissed Sakura's cheek.

"Shall we go for a swim?" Sasori suggested, using one hand to gesture at the expanse of the river. The sun was nearly gone now and the moon would be up soon.

"How about…" Sakura trailed off for a moment, grinning devilishly for a moment. Sasori quirked an eyebrow at her.

"What are you thinking?"

"Well, I've never been skinny dipping," Sakura told him honestly, gazing at him to see his response.

One side of his mouth quirked up as he said, "We'll have to fix that, won't we?"

**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Cheers for chapter one! It may have been that I was frequently distracted, but this chapter took me forever to write xD I'm sorry if you find this chapter boring, but please review and follow/favorite; I will try to make the other chapters better. This chapter was just introducing how Sakura came to be with Sasori and explain their life. That's never much fun :3 Merci for reading! ~~Anbu-Chan**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

**Chapter two! I'm kind of proud of this chapter…I started not knowing what the heck to even write in this chapter, but I figured it out ^_^ I hope you all enjoy. Sasuke is in the story now owo  
Comment what you think; comments are encouraging ! :) I changed a minor detail in chapter one because as I wrote chapter two, I needed to change it. Nothing major, except Sakura is 15 instead of 14. Thank you for taking the time to read this story ^^ ~~Anbu-Chan**

_DISCLAIMER!: I do not own Naruto._

An obnoxiously loud knock on the door awakened the boy from his slumber. He growled, not wanting to wake up just yet.

"Lord Sasuke," A feminine voice called from behind the door. "Your parents request your presence."

Sasuke begrudgingly sat up, running his hand through his silky black locks. His onyx orbs glared daggers at his door as the woman continued to bombard his room with the noise of knocks and chatter. "I'm up," Sasuke said, agitated. Much to his relief, the woman left. What the hell do they want? Sasuke wondered as he stepped out of his bed of black satin. He wore only a pair of black sweatpants, leaving his well-toned chest and abs visible to whomever was in his room. Sasuke was by no means a morning person. In fact, he tended to be irritated throughout the entire day, hating the presence of ogling fan girls and jealous men. He usually preferred solitude; he had not yet found someone to share his time with—a mate.

Sasuke pulled on a simple black shirt, trudging out of his room slowly. It was far too early to be awake; therefore he would make his parents wait. He knew that school would be starting in a few weeks and he would have to become used to waking up early again, but it didn't mean that he couldn't be frustrated. School….it was a subject that Sasuke didn't want to talk about. He disliked attending a school for humans, for the fact that he was required to wake up at their hours and for the fact that he simply did not enjoy being around them. Humans were highly annoying; their constant chatter and ignorance drove him insane to no end. He also hated having to ignore the scent of their blood all day. He and the other vampires that attended Konoha high were allowed to feed on the humans at night, but not during the day. Never during the day. He'd gotten used to ignoring their blood throughout the day, but it was still hard. It would be so glorious if he were just able to suck them all dry; his thirst would be quenched and all the humans would no longer be speaking.

It didn't help that Hunters attended Konoha high, as well. Most of the teachers were Hunters, as well as a few select students. The Hunters vowed not to attack any of the attending vampires, so long as the vampires didn't break the rules. Still, it wasn't a comforting thought to know that there were students who wanted to kill Sasuke's own species. Feeling the watchful eyes of those student Hunters is a bothersome thing to Sasuke. He was used to the human girls' stares of adoration, but the Hunters' stares were much different. The Hunters could tell who the vampires were; the humans couldn't. Sure, the humans knew that vampires habituated their village. What they didn't really think of was that vampires would attend their schools. If the fan girls knew what Sasuke truly was, would they still ogle at him? Sasuke didn't know. If the human girls were to stop their stunts of love, there would still be plenty of vampire girls yearning for Sasuke's attention.

Sasuke dragged his feet slowly down the hallway, not looking forward to the encounter about to happen with his parents. His parents always nagged at him about keeping the honor of the Uchiha clan. The Uchihas are the most prestigious and royal clan of all vampires. They lead the vampire nations and are held in extremely high esteem. Due to this responsibility, the King of all vampires, Fugaku Uchiha, expected his two sons, Itachi and Sasuke, to keep up with the expectations of the clan.

The light of Fugaku's office shined into the hallway through the slightly agape door. Sasuke sighed as he finally approached the door, mentally preparing himself for the lecture that would surely come. When Sasuke entered the office, his eyes squinted at the harsh light of Fugaku's desk light. He saw that his mother stood beside her husband as Fugaku sat in his plush seat. Fugaku gestured for Sasuke to have a seat, but Sasuke declined. He hoped to not have to stay in here long enough to be able to get comfortable.

"Sasuke," Sasuke's father began. "Do you know why I called you in here?"

"I have an idea," Sasuke muttered beneath his breath. Of course, his father heard him anyway.

"Have you even been trying? The other royal clans are beginning to think lesser of us because you have yet to choose a girl to court. We are becoming a laughing stock because you have been too wrapped up in yourself to search for a mate," Fugaku said accusingly, shooting an agitated look at Sasuke.

"Honey," Mikoto said softly to her husband. "He has just turned sixteen…"

"I am aware, and all the other royals his age at least have a minute idea of who will become their mate," Fugaku stated bitterly.

Vampire royals were meant to find their mate much earlier than most humans or even other vampires. Most royals chose their mate when they were about sixteen or seventeen, and then were truly mated at age eighteen. It didn't look good if a royal didn't have his mate by age eighteen; royals were meant to be figures of certainty, and an unmated royal was uncertain. Sasuke had searched through the vampire bachelorettes and through his human classmates, but had found no one that struck a chord within him. It wasn't very common for a human to become the mate of a vampire, but it was heard of. Fugaku would more than likely be devastated if Sasuke decided on a human girl, but Sasuke was searching through all his options in order to get his father off of his back.

"I have been searching," Sasuke stated, barely trying to defend himself.

"Not hard enough!" Fugaku began to raise his voice. "Itachi had his mate picked out by this time. He has brought honor to the clan. You have not, and don't even seem to be trying."

Sasuke's brow twitched at being compared to his elder brought yet again. Why did he have to live up to such high standards? The pressure to be perfect was always looming over his shoulder, threatening to kill him.

"I can assure you that I will have a mate picked out within the next few months," Sasuke said coldly. All he wanted right now was to leave this room and get away from his father's smoldering gaze. He didn't relish the thought of choosing a mate that he didn't feel a pull towards, but he would if it meant getting his father off his case. Anything to stop his father from breathing down his neck over this…. He truly despised this topic. He wouldn't admit it, but he yearned for a true connection with someone. He made himself appear stoic and un-wanting of company, but sometimes the solitude was an unwelcome thing.

Fugaku leaned back in his chair and examined his son. Finally, he said, "You'd better. Now go change into something more proper."

* * *

Night had fallen and cascaded over the village, bringing darkness in its wake. Sasuke wandered the streets, clinging to the shadows. Vampires were permitted to feed on humans at night, but not out in the open. If the Hunters witnessed the vampires feeding on a human, they would attack. The Hunters were disgusted at the thought of the vampires taking blood from civilians; it was the instinct of the Hunters to protect the humans.

The humans knew of vampires but felt safe to be out at night because they knew that there were Hunters to protect them from danger. Due to this knowledge, Sasuke was able to go up to a party at a rather large house. High school students poured in and out of the house, laughing boisterously and having a good time. Sasuke envied them for their simplistic lives, despite how much he found the humans annoying.

"Hey, Sasuke!" Naruto bounded up behind Sasuke and slapped him on the back. He gave Sasuke a big grin as he asked, "Want to go in?"

Sasuke gave Naruto a dark look, muttering, "Of course I'm going in."

Kakashi joined his two friends, holding his hands up at Sasuke to show that he meant no harm, "Whoa. Did your parents talk to you today?"

Sasuke simply nodded, stalking up to the house. Girls saw him approaching and squealed, whispering to each other. A girl walked out of the house and onto the porch; she seemed to be the host of this party. Sasuke thought her name may be Tsuzuki; he vaguely remembered her face in a few of his classes this past year.

"Hello, Sasuke," Tsuzuki purred, giving him a cat-like smile. "Nice to see you show up."

"Hn," was the only response Sasuke dignified her with.

Naruto and Kakashi held back, watching the royal Uchiha enter the house with the well-known slut, Tsuzuki. Naruto rubbed the back of his blond hair and stared after his dark haired friend sympathetically.

"I feel bad for him," Naruto said to Kakashi. "I can't imagine how he must feel, being so pressured to find a mate. I know he wants a real love too, not just someone to call his mate. I'm really happy I found my mate. My family wasn't happen when they found out she was human and also a Hunter, but I've already decided I'm going to change her. I've started talking to her but she's really shy. But oh, man…Hinata is so beautiful…"

"How are you even getting her to talk to you?" Kakashi asked. "She is part of the Hyuga clan, a well-respected Hunter family. She herself may not be a fighter, but she is still a Hunter. Her family will never let you touch her."

"I know it's not the most convenient situation," Naruto agreed. "But Hinata and I really have a connection… I know she's my soul mate. I just know it, and I know that she feels the same way. We will make this work."

"Seeing you and Naruto be so pressured to be perfect, having mates and all that, makes me happy that I don't come from a royal family," Kakashi admitted. "I don't have to worry about that. I'm just a body guard to the Uchihas; Sasuke specifically."

Naruto and Sasuke were going to be going into their junior year of high school. Kakashi graduated from high school two years ago, and was known as friends to Sasuke and Naruto while he was in high school. Because of his association with the popular two, he too was popular although he had his own popularity prior to Sasuke and Naruto entering high school. Kakashi was still able to attend the high school parties with Sasuke and Naruto; the high school kids were actually glad to have Kakashi, a "college guy", present.

"Yea, some things about being royal suck, but you learn to deal with it," Naruto murmured. "We should go make sure the girls aren't suffocating Sasuke."

Kakashi and Naruto walked into the party house in search of the Uchiha, but he was nowhere in sight. Empty cups were strewn across the tables and bodies were packed all over the place; loud music blared through speakers strategically placed around the room. Kakashi sighed, "Oh well, at least we know the fan girls aren't killing him. He can handle himself."

Naruto laughed, "You are some body guard."

Kakashi rolled his eyes, saying, "You know that Sasuke would literally kill me if I smothered him like his parents want me to."

"I know," Naruto said, then went to the middle of the make-shift dance floor and began dancing. Naruto was a notorious party boy; he enjoyed being the center of attention.

Meanwhile, Sasuke and Tsuzuki occupied Tsuzuki's bedroom upstairs. He'd managed to sneak her past the Hunter present and into a secluded space. She was very eager to be alone with the Uchiha, wanting nothing more than to have him all to herself.

Their mouths meshed and Tsuzuki kept annoyingly trying to stick her tongue down Sasuke's throat. He became agitated and decided to move down to kiss her neck. He trailed kisses from her jaw down her neck, licking and suckling certain areas. Tsuzuki moaned when Sasuke lightly nipped her skin.

"Sasuke," She whispered, her arms clutching him. She honestly thought he was interested in her…how sad. He just wanted to get her alone so he could feed and maybe even have a good lay. Drinking blood during sex was the most pleasurable thing a vampire could feel, but it was an act of love. Sasuke did not love Tsuzuki.

Just as Sasuke was about to slide Tsuzuki's shirt off, he sensed the Hunter begin to come upstairs. He inwardly cursed. He would not get his sexual pleasures today, for he would have to be quick. He swiftly bit into Tsuzuki's neck, covering her mouth as she cried out in shock. The vampire's bite only hurt the human at first and only if the human was resisting. Other than that, the bite felt pleasurable to the human as well as the vampire. Tsuzuki quickly came to enjoy the bite and kneaded her fingers through Sasuke's raven black hair.

Sasuke pulled away from Tsuzuki and licked the blood off of her neck; soon, the wound would heal. Sasuke looked into Tsuzuki's glazed stare and sternly said, "You will not remember what just happened. All you remember is that we came upstairs to kiss, and that is all." Tsuzuki nodded obediently. "Good, now go to sleep." Once again, Tsuzuki obeyed by shutting her eyes and falling asleep.

Sasuke placed her on the bed and went to the window to leave. He glanced back at Tsuzuki and went back to her. He stared down at her and leaned down towards her neck once more. He could mark her, and finally have his father stop hounding him about a mate. It would be so easy….

Sasuke opened his mouth to bite Tsuzuki again…but stopped. He pulled away. He couldn't do it. Even imagining having Tsuzuki as his mate made him feel sick to his stomach. There was no way. So he went to the window and jumped out, landing gracefully on the ground just as the Hunter opened the door to Tsuzuki's room, where there was no vampire in sight.

Someday… Sasuke thought. Someday there would be someone.

* * *

"Sakura," Sasori said, drawing Sakura's attention away from her book. Sakura quirked an eyebrow at him. "Let's go start a bonfire."

Sakura smiled broadly, asking, "With plenty of 'smores, right?"

"Of course, I wouldn't have it any other way," Sasori smirked, standing up from the couch. Sakura followed suit and set her novel down on the coffee table. The pair meandered to the kitchen to gather the firewood and the supplies for the 'smores. They headed out to the lavished desk and Sasori dumped the firewood into the pit, lighting a match easily and flicking it on top of the wood.

"What a beautiful night," Sakura commented, gazing into the star-filled sky. The moonlight shining all over the forest and deck made the scene seem almost majestic. There was no breeze, so Sakura was warm and comfortable.

Sakura set down the 'smore supplies on a small patio table, then went to sit down on a swinging seat, kicking her legs so the seat moved. After tending to the fire and making sure the flames grew to be big and bright, Sasori strode over and plopped down beside Sakura. The sudden extra weight made the swing slow down, but Sakura was quick to bring it back up to momentum.

"I can think of something even more beautiful than the night," Sasori murmured, looking straight at Sakura. Sakura blushed a bit and a small smile crossed her lips.

"You're so cheesy…" Sakura told him with a laugh in her voice. She giggled when he leaned over and kissed her neck sweetly. "Sasori…" He looked at her. "I love you."

A display of emotions flicked across Sasori's magnificent eyes. He smirked, leaning to press a passionate kiss upon Sakura's lips. He pulled away, whispering into her ear, "I love you too."

"Shall we begin making our delicious treats?" Sakura suggested, her eyes drifting to the marshmallows.

"You and your sugary foods…" Sasori chuckled, grabbing the marshmallows and stabbing two of them with some twigs from the woods. He handed one to Sakura and she eagerly thrust the marshmallow into the flames. Sasori followed suit, enjoying this time with Sakura. It warmed his heart when he heard her giggle over her marshmallow being on fire, quickly exterminating the flame.

They ate their treats in a happy silence, listening to the fire crackle animatedly. They threw the twigs used to hold the marshmallows into the fire, both leaning back contentedly. The silence stretched on when Sasori finally spoke.

"Sakura."

"Hmm?" Sakura turned her head to Sasori, gazing at him lazily.

"I have a very serious question to ask you."

Sakura leaned forward at this, swiveling in her seat to completely face him, "What is it?"

Rather than answer her, Sasori swiftly rose from his seat, lightly grabbing Sakura's wrist and pulling her up with him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and she put her hands on his shoulders. They began to dance slowly to the song of the flames, gazing into each other's eyes affectionately. Sasori tilted his head down to have his lips meet Sakura's tenderly. She pressed herself flush against Sasori, wrapping her arms around his neck and tangling her fingers in his luxurious locks.

They stood there for minutes, kissing each other passionately as if they only had right then. Eventually, to a disgruntled Sakura's distaste, Sasori pulled away and looked down at Sakura seriously.

"Sakura… I want you to be mine. I love you, and only you."

Sakura stared at him in wonder, not processing what he was saying to her. She knew that Sasori loved her, but she didn't expect him to ask to mark her so soon.

"What are you saying?" Sakura whispered, wanting to hear him say it.

"I'm saying that I want you to belong to me. I want you to have my mark so everyone knows that you are mine, and I am yours," Sasori told her earnestly.

Sakura stared at Sasori for a moment before beginning to laugh joyously. She planted a peck on Sasori's lips, telling him excitedly, "Yes! I want to be yours. Sasori….give me your mark."

Sasori smirked and Sakura admired the light hitting his eyes, showing the joy there. He leaned down and trailed kisses up and down Sakura's neck, causing Sakura to sigh in bliss. She'd been waiting for this day, the day when her love would give her his mark. Eventually, she knew, Sasori would turn her into a vampire as well. He didn't want to right away because he wanted her to grow and be able to experience some more human years, but one day… After all, why would Sakura want to stop aging at 15? That was far too young; she wanted to be older before she changed.

"Are you ready?" Sasori murmured into her neck. She giggled softly, nodding her head in confirmation. "Hmm," Sasori hummed, licking the flesh of Sakura's neck. He opened his mouth and bit her neck, making Sakura gasp. At first she was surprised at the needle-poking sensation, but that almost immediately turned into pleasure. She heard Sasori grunt in ecstasy at taking in her blood, and her heart fluttered at knowing that he enjoyed it. She felt high, and knew that it was the endorphins of a vampire bite. But that wasn't the only thing making her body tingle in joy… The fact that it was her love doing this made it all the better.

Sasori took his mouth away from Sakura's neck and licked the blood up tenderly, admiring the bite marks that he made on his lover. He still had his arms around Sakura's waist, and now he had to support her as she leaned heavily on him. He used one hand to brush hair out of Sakura's face as he looked at her with concern.

"Are you okay?" Sasori asked her worriedly.

Sakura nodded weakly and smiled, "So long as you're with me, I will always be okay."

Sasori smiled as well, "I'll take you to bed so you can rest. My mark will appear soon." He then scooped Sakura up to carry her bridal style, walking to her bedroom. He lay her down gently, tucking her in. Her eyes were closed, and still she looked beautiful. Sasori was about to turn around and leave when Sakura spoke.

"Don't go. Stay with me."

"Just let me go put out the fire, and then I will be right back," Sasori assured her. He was back in less than twenty seconds, glad for his speed. He crawled into bed beside Sakura, sliding his arms around her protectively. He tucked her head underneath his chin, hearing her sigh happily.

"I love you, Sasori," Sakura murmured sleepily.

"I love you, too."

* * *

Sakura's eyes felt very heavy. She tried to open them several times but she couldn't. Her mind wanted to wake up but her body insisted on staying asleep. In the end, her body won and she slept for a few more hours. When she finally woke up, she was alone in her bed. She knew she wasn't alone in the house, though, because she could smell breakfast cooking in the kitchen.

She swung her legs over the bed, stretching her arms above her head. Something on her left arm caught her eye. She held the inside of her left wrist in front of her face and a wide grin broke across her face. Sasori's mark! It was truly gorgeous. Red swirls surrounded with a pale purple; Sakura stared at it for several moments before jumping out of bed. She ran to the door, throwing it open. She dashed down the hallway, surprising Sasori by bursting into the kitchen. He looked at her curiously before she launched herself at him. He caught her easily, but the impact made him step back a bit.

Sakura smiled up at Sasori proudly, "Your mark! It's so magnificent, Sasori. Look at it!" Sakura held her newly marked wrist up for Sasori to see.

Sasori smiled, taking in the mark that he put on Sakura. "It's even more magnificent because now, every vampire will know that you belong to me."

"And, you belong to me," Sakura told him, kissing him fervently. Sasori smirked against her lips, and she knew that he agreed.

"Would you like to take a trip into town?" Sasori asked her. Sakura beamed, her eyes sparkling.

"I would love that," Sakura admitted.

"You go get ready and then you can come and eat breakfast," Sasori informed her, turning her to face the direction of her bedroom. She skipped perkily to her room, enthusiastic to go into town with Sasori.

After a quick shower, Sakura went to her dresser to find what to wear. She decided on a bright red dress with spaghetti straps; it was tighter at the top and then flowed loosely to her knees. The neckline was sequenced with white beads. She donned her feet with simple white flip-flops. Her hair dried naturally into waves, something that she adored. She examined herself in the mirror, happy with how she looked. She felt worthy to be Sasori's lover. She knew that he always thought that she was beautiful, but it was still nice to feel good too.

Sakura grabbed a white purse and placed her cellphone and wallet inside of it. She stepped out of the room, shutting the door lightly behind her. When she entered the kitchen, Sasori had a plate of scrambled eggs with bacon and a glass of milk set out for her. She smiled at his consideration.

"Thank you very much," Sakura said before she took a bite of the delicious food. Sasori was good at making breakfast while Sakura was better at making lunch and dinner.

"Anything for you, mon amour," Sasori kissed the back of her neck then sat down beside her at the kitchen table. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel fantastic," Sakura said honestly. "I don't feel sick or weak at all."

"That's good. I was worried you wouldn't feel completely right," Sasori confessed.

Sakura stood up and put her dishes into the sink, saying excitedly, "Okay, let's go!"

* * *

Sakura and Sasori walked through the Rain village with their hands laced. They walked through the park, enjoying the bustling traffic and interaction with a few friends. Sasori noticed the other vampires looking at Sakura, some with curiosity and others with desire. It's true that Sakura's blood was particularly alluring, which is how he found her in the cave all those years ago. He would glare daggers at those that showed desire in their eyes; Sakura was his and they knew it, they could sense the imprint on her aura. Sakura was unaware of the stares of the vampires, and he was glad. He didn't want her to be startled.

Sakura couldn't determine who was a vampire and who wasn't. That was something he would have to teach her someday, for her own safety.

They were sitting peacefully at a bench in the park, talking, when a woman with blue hair approached them. Sakura had no idea who the woman was, but she was certainly stunning. Her blue hair reflected beautifully in the sunlight and her eyes were sexy and dangerous. Sakura instantly became wary of the woman, though, when Sasori stiffened.

"Konan," Sasori said. "What are you doing here?"

"How impolite, Sasori," Konan chided. "Is that really how you talk to someone that you work with?"

Sakura looked between Sasori and Konan confusedly, then it clicked. Konan must be part of the Akatsuki, the organization of vampires that Sasori worked for. But what was she doing here? Sakura had never seen anyone that Sasori worked with. He said that the Akatsuki weren't safe and he didn't want Sakura anywhere near them.

"It is when I'm not working," Sasori stated coldly, looking at Konan stoically.

"You should be happy that I'm here," Konan said. "I'm coming to warn you."

Sasori glanced at Sakura before turning weary eyes back to Konan, "Warn me about what, exactly?"

"A very important mission is going to be coming up soon," Konan said simply.

"And? What does that have to do with me?"

"All the Akatsuki members will need to be present for this mission. We will be leaving for a while," Konan explained.

"What is this mission? How long?" Sasori demanded.

"I cannot discuss the details here," Konan's eyes flicked to look at Sakura before focusing on Sasori again. "Someone will be coming to fetch you when we are ready to meet."

"And if I refuse? I am becoming tired of your monotonous tasks."

Konan paused for a moment before saying simply, "We will kill your girl if you do not comply with our wishes."

Sasori sat up rom-rod straight and growled, "You wouldn't dare."

"We would, actually," Konan smiled viciously at Sakura. "You joined the Akatsuki by blood when your family was killed; you cannot break away from us. We will do whatever it takes to get what we want." And then Konan disappeared, leaving a trail of wind behind her.

"W-what…was that?" Sakura stuttered, frightened by Konan's gaze. Frightened by the threat she put forth.

Sasori turned sad eyes to his love. "We will talk once we get back home."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

**Bonjour! I can breathe again! School has ended…and now I have a trillion other things I have to do -.- Anyway, please enjoy chapter 3 ^_^ Review, please! I would love to hear your thoughts :) ~~Anbu-Chan**

_DISCLAIMER!: I do not own Naruto._

The days of summer turned quickly into weeks as Sakura and Sasori spent every moment together. So far, no one had come to fetch Sasori, but Sakura knew that one day someone would come. One day, Sasori would have to leave on some important mission; he would have to leave her. Konan had never specified how long "a while" would be, but Sakura feared for the worst. If the mission were to take a long time, surely it would be dangerous. Thinking of Sasori in danger and away from her made Sakura's blood run cold.

"Stop looking so worried," Sasori pushed her shoulder lightly, playfully.

"I can't help it," Sakura admitted helplessly. "You will have to go away from me soon, and for an unknown amount of time. How can I not worry about that?"

"I suppose you can't," Sasori looked to the ceiling in thought, sitting beside Sakura on their couch in the living room. "But there is something that you can do."

"What is that?"

"You can enjoy every moment that we have together like it is our last," Sasori smiled down at Sakura. "Now, won't that make everything more special?"

The thought _was_ a comforting one, but the depression of knowing that one moment really would be their last—for "a while", anyway—still loomed over Sakura's head like an unwelcome rain cloud. No matter how much sunshine tried to break through the dark clouds, there was an ever-present rain always showering on the slivers of happiness.

* * *

"Ready or not, here I come!" Sakura cried, opening her emerald eyes to take in the surrounding forest. She and Sasori were spending their day playing games and right now the game was hide-and-seek. Naturally, with Sasori being a vampire, he was always quickly able to locate Sakura; so it was usually Sakura doing the searching. She didn't mind, though, because it was fun either way. There was always a tingle of anticipation as she waited for Sasori to jump out from behind a tree to frighten her. He didn't do so often, but the paranoia was always present.

Sakura trekked along the path, peeking behind trees and shrubbery; so far her search had been to no avail. She wandered to the river and cautiously searched there; still no Sasori. After ten minutes of pointless searching, Sakura stood in the middle of a clearing with her hands on her hips.

"It's no fun if you don't let me find you," Sakura sighed, exasperated. If he didn't want to come out, fine. Sakura would wait here until he broke down and revealed his whereabouts. She heard a soft rustling behind her and smiled. There he was; she knew he would give in eventually. But when the air directly behind her shifted quickly, Sakura tensed up noticeably.

This was not Sasori. This person behind her did not give off the same warm presence that Sasori always emitted when he was around her. Sakura was about to whirl around to face this mysterious person when they grabbed her arms and pinned them behind her, pulling her close to them. Based on the feel of the body pressing against her back, Sakura was able to deduce that this person was male.

"Who are you?" Sakura asked, struggling to remain calm. She cursed herself when she heard her voice tremble slightly. But she felt afraid. If there were an intruder in the woods, Sasori would normally have come rushing to her to keep her safe. Where was he?

Rather than receive a verbal answer, the man brushed Sakura's silky hair away, revealing her creamy neck. She felt his breath on her skin and shuddered in revolt; so this man was a vampire. Sakura felt Sasori's mark on her left wrist and knew that this vampire was aware of it. Only truly disgusting vampires broke the code that a mark put into place; no biting or trying to steal away a person who is claimed.

Sakura took a sharp inhale of breath and prepared to scream when a calloused hand slapped over her mouth to block the sound. The man tsked her. "Do not do that, un." Sakura tried, although already knowing it wouldn't work, slamming her foot down on his despite only having on tennis shoes. As expected, the man didn't even flinch. Rather, he began chuckling. "You are quite feisty; I can see why Sasori likes you so much, un."

"You know Sasori?" Sakura's voice was muffled due to the hand clasped over her mouth. How would this stranger know Sasori?

"I do, un," The man admitted. "We are partners."

A sharp blade whizzed past the man's head, barely missing it. The blade embedded itself into a tree trunk not too far from where Sakura was currently being restrained; the light glinted on it dangerously. "Let go of her, Deidara."

The man, Deidara, spun around while still holding Sakura's hand. Sasori stood in a tree branch, glaring down at Deidara menacingly. His stance looked like he was ready to pounce and his aura was not friendly. He looked like a fierce warrior, except rather than donning armor he wore tan shorts and a black t-shirt.

"Why would I do that? She looks absolutely delicious, un," Deidara commented. Sakura could practically picture him licking his lips; the thought made her shudder.

Suddenly, Sasori was no longer standing in the trees; Sakura's human eyes could not keep track of his movements, but the mark allowed her to have an idea of where he was. He appeared behind Deidara, holding another terrifying blade to Deidara's throat.

"It would be in your best interest to release her, baka," Sasori suggested threateningly.

Deidara began laughing and released his grip on Sakura, pushing her slightly forward and stepping away from the two. "You don't have to be so uptight; you know that _I_ wouldn't touch her, un."

"Someone in the Akatsuki would, though," Sasori stated blandly, looking at Deidara with exasperation. Sakura could tell that the two were friends and wondered why Sasori never brought Deidara around. Sasori always said that he wanted to keep his work life separate from her because it was dangerous, but if he had friends—even friends from work—then he could have brought them to meet her. Sakura had never liked how some parts of Sasori's life were so mysterious.

"I suppose you know why I am here then, un." It was not a question. The graveness in Deidara's voice said that he did not want to be the one who delivered this news. But then, what better person to break such bad news that Sasori's very own partner and comrade?

"I do know," Sasori sighed. "Give me the details."

Time seemed to move slowly for Sakura as Deidara began to speak, "We are leaving in about a month, un. There's a bunch of complex details that I can't explain to you, you'll have to ask Pein, but what I can tell you is that we are hunting a powerful demon," Deidara paused, gauging Sasori's reaction. Sasori frowned.

"Go on," Sasori insisted. "How long will this mission take?"

"Pein has said that this mission will take about two years, if not more, un," Deidara mumbled, looking at the ground sullenly.

"Two years?" Sakura cried in disdain. She knew that Sasori would probably be gone for a few months, but _two years?_ That was a very long time. A much longer time than Sasori or Sakura even wanted to think about.

"Unfortunately, un," Deidara confirmed, shaking his head. "I hate it when missions take a long time like that."

Sasori stood there for a moment, dumbfounded. Never before had the Akatsuki called him away for such a long time; there weren't many missions that took this long. What kind of demon were they hunting, anyway? And what would he do with Sakura? Things were moving too fast now that Sasori had a deadline. Numbly he asked, "Where will I be meeting you?"

"At the bridge from the Rainbow village, un," Deidara told him. Sasori nodded and Deidara took off with an impressive vampire speed, leaving the two lovers alone.

The two stood there silently for a few minutes, both of them wrapped up in their own thoughts. Finally, Sasori turned to Sakura and silently picked her up bridal style, slowly walking in the direction of their house. Sakura couldn't find the voice to speak, and right now, Sasori didn't really expect her to talk. They would be talking plenty later.

* * *

"I have to move into a new house?" Sakura's voice went up an octave in her shock. "But I wanted to stay here…so I could be in our home when you came back…so I could remember you in everything here…"

"I know, but it wouldn't be safe for you to stay here," Sasori told her. "There are no Hunters out here to protect you. After my scent becomes weaker, more vampires will be coming through this area. You will be defenseless against them; alone at night, alone on your way to town. You would have no way to fend any vampire off."

Sakura knew that Sasori had a good point, so she couldn't argue that anymore. Instead, she murmured, "So…where will I be staying?"

"I've done some research and have found an apartment for sale in Konoha, the Leaf village. They have plenty of Hunters there, so you will be safe. They have a well-known school, so you will be able to continue your academics. You'll be able to make friends there. They also have a dance team there, so you will be able to make friends in that and continue your dancing," Sasori tried to look enthusiastic about all the good things of Konoha, but his eyes were sad. Neither of them wanted to be talking about this.

"Sounds…great," Sakura plastered a fake smile on her face. It stayed a total of two seconds before she broke into tears, hugging Sasori and burying her face into his chest. He wrapped his arms around her securely, holding her comfortingly.

"We can go and take a look at that apartment tomorrow…" Sasori trailed off.

If only tomorrow wouldn't come.

* * *

"So Konoha, huh?" Sakura asked dully, staring out the window of the car. Watching the trees swirl by only made the trip seem to go by faster. Or maybe it was the fact that she didn't want to go house-hunting. Probably both.

"It's a beautiful town," Sasori remarked; the gates of the town came into view far too quickly. It was hard to completely determine from outside, but so far Sasori's comment proved to be true. A copious amount of trees surrounded the perimeter of the village, giving it a nature-like feel. "It's even better on the inside."

"You've been here?" Sakura inquired, her interest piqued. She always enjoyed hearing of Sasori's adventures.

"I've been inside a couple of times, yes," Sasori admitted, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. "A few meetings, those sorts of things." Sakura nodded, accepting that a lot of Sasori's travels were for business not pleasure.

They continued the short rest of the car-ride in a tense silence, until the enormous gates of Konoha towered over them. As they pulled into a parking structure early on in the town, Sakura could already see that this town was bustling with people all over the place. The fear of vampires was obviously not very present, especially since it was day time.

Sasori exited the car, heading to Sakura's side to open the door for her. She stepped out, forcing herself to smile at him. "It has a lot of people, that's good," Sakura commented, her voice strained. Sasori put his arm around her shoulder, smiling lightly at her effort.

"What is this apartment like?" Sakura asked as they approached Konoha's gates. The guards stepped forward and Sasori showed them his ID—they stepped aside, unknowingly letting a dangerous rogue vampire into their village. Sasori wouldn't hurt anyone, but being part of the Akatsuki gave him the name of dangerous.

"It's nice," Sasori began. "It has two stories…the first floor has a living room and kitchen; the second floor has two bedrooms and a bathroom. So you'll have plenty of space…"

Sakura sighed, "It definitely won't be home."

"No," Sasori agreed. "It is not like our home."

As they walked through the village, Sakura admired all the shops and restaurants. Obviously this village was very prosperous. "Perhaps I could get a job…" Sakura said aloud, looking at a few potential places; a flower shop, a bookstore. It would be good because then Sakura wouldn't have to feel bad about spending all the money that Sasori was providing for her, and it would also be one more thing to take Sakura's mind off of the whole situation.

"That might be good for you…" Sasori stopped in the middle of the street and turned his head to look at Sakura. "But I don't want you to completely overload yourself, okay? I know you want things to take your mind off of this whole thing, as do I, but I don't want you having any stress breakdowns while I'm not with you."

"You know that I can't promise anything," Sakura grinned as Sasori rolled his eyes.

"Am I going to be worrying about you the entire time that I'm gone? No need to answer that, the answer is yes," Sasori sighed.

Sakura laughed lightly and went onto her tiptoes to place a kiss on Sasori's cheek. "I'll try my best to not make you worry too much…"

They continued through the busy village, with Sakura attempting to take everything in. There were _so many_ people! It was so hard to believe that there could be such drastic differences in so many villages. As they walked, the streets became particularly congested with people as they all tried to get into a few select shops. Sakura and Sasori pushed their way into the crowd, for there was no other way to get to the apartment. A big clump of people shoved Sakura and Sasori apart, and as much as Sakura tried, she could not see Sasori. With no other choice, Sakura pushed her way through the crowd herself, nearly getting trampled a couple of times.

Sakura broke free from the crowd and heaved a huge sigh of relief. She stepped forward to further herself from the crowd so she could survey it for Sasori when she ran into someone's chest. Sakura froze and looked up, her eyes meeting midnight black orbs. Sakura blushed and jumped back, bowing and apologizing. When she stood up straight again, she saw that the man was very attractive. He had pale and beautiful skin with high cheek bones and defined features, his midnight eyes looked at her blankly. His black hair resembled a chicken's butt, which Sakura found hysterical; it was funny and at the same time his hair looked incredibly soft. The man was tall and despite his black t-shirt and shorts, you could tell that he was muscular.

For a moment Sakura could not look away from the man…he was far too beautiful.

"You're not from here." Was all the man said.

Sakura swallowed around the lump in her throat, shaking her head and saying, "No, I'm not."

"Sakura!" Sasori called. He jumped out of the crowd, his clothes slightly askew from all of the people. "That crowd was ballistic." Sakura's attention was torn from the handsome man as her head whipped in Sasori's direction. She immediately dashed over to him and hooked her arm through is.

She turned back in the direction of the man and was going to apologize one last time, but he was gone. Sakura looked around, confused.

"What are you looking for?" Sasori asked her.

Deciding that it wasn't worth pursuing, Sakura answered, "Nothing, I'm just looking at all of these shops."

"There are many," Sasori stated. "The apartment is not far from here."

The couple continued their trek to the apartment. As they went on, Sakura began noticing posters taped onto buildings and poles. She pulled away from Sasori and went up to one, reading the printed text.

_**Curfew is 10pm. Do not wander out after 10pm; vampire attacks have been increasing in the past few months. Thank you –The Hunters **_

"Hm, they even advertise the vampire attacks here," Sakura commented.

Sasori sighed, "No place can be completely safe, I suppose…"

Sakura smiled at him reassuringly, "Don't worry, I'll be fine. No way will some vampire hurt me while I have your mark." Sakura held up her arm and admired her tattoo.

"I would still like to teach you self-defense," Sasori said nervously.

Sakura nodded, "That would be helpful too." Sensing that something was still bothering Sasori, Sakura asked him what was the matter.

"I will tell you later," was all Sasori replied with.

A few minutes later they arrived at a beautiful building with a few apartments. There were gardens in the front of the building and after you walked up a set of stone stairs, the doors looked grand in red paint. An enthusiastic realtor was waiting at the bottom of the stone steps; he waved when Sakura and Sasori walked up.

"Hi, I'm Satoshi Haruhi. How are you two today?" Satoshi beamed at the couple.

"We're fine, thank you," Sakura told him kindly.

"Are you ready to take a look at this apartment?"

"Yes, we are, thank you," Sasori said. Satoshi nodded and turned around, leading them up the stone steps as he chattered on about senseless things. He told facts about Konoha and the apartment, trying very hard to make the apartment seem more and more appealing.

"This apartment is relatively close to the high school, as well as a few blocks from the popular shopping district," Satoshi rambled as he unlocked the front door to the apartment. The door swung open and Sakura's jaw dropped. They stepped into the apartment and Sakura's jaw stayed down. Sasori smiled down at her.

"What do you think?" Sasori asked her quietly.

"It's…" Sakura was speechless. The apartment was gorgeous; much better than she had been expecting! There was a small hallway with a spacious closet to hang coats and put shoes; the floor was a plush white carpet. It opened to the large living which already had furniture in it. The room was also carpeted with the white carpet, making the room seem bigger. A dark wood coffee table was surrounded by black leather couches and ottomans. A flat screen television adorned the wall; a dark wood DVD rack was set up beneath the television.

Through a doorway was the kitchen. The kitchen had hardwood floors and the cabinets were a dark cherry wood; granite countertops and advanced cooking appliances…Sakura would have a good time cooking in here.

Upstairs, the bedrooms had the same white carpets and had marvelous furniture—large dressers and a desk and bookshelves, queen beds with beautiful embroidered comforters. Both bedrooms had walk-in closets. The bathroom was between the two bedrooms, and it was also lovely. With a relatively large vanity in the bathroom, as well as a stunning shower.

"You…what…how on earth can you afford this?" Sakura whispered at Sasori in shock.

"Don't worry about it," Sasori smiled. "Since our home is lavished, I wanted you to live in a place that was also lavish. Because I'll have to sell our house"—Sakura's face fell—"but by the time I get back, you should like Konoha and we can just live here."

"I don't know what to say…"

Sasori hugged Sakura tightly. "Just be happy. Do you want this place?" Sakura nodded, her face buried in Sasori's chest.

Satoshi came waltzing up the stairs, having let Sakura and Sasori explore the house themselves. "So, what's the verdict, guys?"

"We'll take it," Sasori informed him.

Satoshi clapped happily. "That's great news! Just come on downstairs and we can fill out all the paperwork."

"We're going to start self-defense when we get home," Sasori said after they got back into the car.

"Okay," Sakura sighed. They began driving; instead of staring out the window Sakura stared at Sasori's mark on her wrist. She ran her finger over the beautiful markings, glad that she would have that part of Sasori with her when he left.

"Sakura."

"Hmm?" Sakura hummed, not looking away from her tattoo.

"…my mark isn't going to stay on you for long after I leave."

A dead silence filled the car. Sasori turned his head toward Sakura and saw that her face had gone pale.

"What…?"

"When a vampire isn't around, his mark isn't able to be sustained for long after," Sasori explained.

"How long will yours stay on me?" Sakura whispered.

"Since you weren't marked that long ago, my mark will only stay on you for about a month and a half after I leave," Sasori muttered regretfully.

"But… that's so short of a time. So after that, other vampires won't be afraid to hurt me anymore?" Sakura asked fearfully. She'd always had a sense of peace because she knew that Sasori was always around to protect her, and when she got his mark she felt even more peaceful because then, even if Sasori was not with her, other vampires would know that Sasori would kick their ass if they touched her. Now that sense of security was going to go away.

"That's why I took you to Konoha, where there are a lot of Hunters."

Sakura stayed silent for the rest of the car ride home. Things just kept getting worse and worse.

* * *

Sakura sat down heavily on the couch, panting. She grabbed her water and gulped down half of it, fanning herself as she sweat. Sasori had been teaching her defense for the past couple of weeks, and today was the last day. Sakura had always been a fast learner, and with her dancing skills she was able to pick up many of the skills quickly.

"You've done great," Sasori told her, sitting down beside her. "Just remember to apply all of the things I taught you if you ever enter a dangerous situation."

Sakura nodded, leaning back and staring up at the ceiling. The sun would be setting soon, and Sakura still had to pack. "Want to help me pack?" Sakura asked. She didn't want to pack, but she especially did not want to pack by herself. She wanted to spend every last second with Sasori before the short time they had left together ended.

Sasori nodded so they went to Sakura's bedroom, pulling out her suitcases and duffle bags. It didn't take too long to pack seeing as they were just putting all of her clothes into the suitcases, so in less than an hour they were standing in the middle of the room with Sakura's bags full of all of her belongings.

"I don't want to leave," Sakura's voice trembled as she spoke. Sasori pulled Sakura into a tight embrace, both of them clinging to each other. Sakura tilted her head upward and kissed Sasori roughly. They stood there for a while, kissing and simply enjoying the other's warmth. Sakura slid her hands down Sasori's naked chest—for he, conveniently for Sakura, did not train with a shirt on—and fingered the top of his training pants. She gripped the tie of the pants and began to pull it undone.

Sasori sighed and pulled away from Sakura. "I know…what you want. And believe me, I want it too… But this isn't the right time. We shouldn't rush into something that we wouldn't have done if we weren't on this time crunch."

Sakura closed her eyes and didn't respond for a while. She was silent for so long that Sasori lightly touched her shoulder and murmured, "Sakura…?"

Her eyes opened and in them was not sadness but the wickedness that Sasori was so used to seeing. "I know. You're right. But there's still so much we can do."

Sasori smiled lightly. "There is."

So they spent the rest of the night together happily. There was nothing they could do except enjoy each other and bask in the other's presence while they still had it.

* * *

"What's the matter, Teme?!" Naruto boisterously yelled, barging into Sasuke's solitude of staring into the moonlit waters of a small, secluded pond.

Sasuke closed his eyes and exhaled, shifting his bangs. This was his favorite spot, and Naruto always seemed to intrude on him here.

"Nothing, Dobe,"Sasuke replied coldly. He did not have any desire to talk to anyone.

"It'll make you feel better if you talk about it," Naruto muttered, pouting.

Whether that was true or not, Sasuke did not want to talk about the pressure of having to find a mate to his best friend. He did not want to think about his parents breathing down his neck about maintaining the family pride; he did not want to think of the girl he saw in the village today. The girl with pink hair and such stunning, beautiful emerald eyes… Her soft skin and perfect curves… He had only seen her for a few moments, and yet she had made such an impression on him.

No, he did not want to think about her. And he did not want to think about the anger that rose within him when he saw her run the red-haired vampire. The red-haired vampire that had obviously marked her. No.

Sasuke did not realize that he had made himself angry again until he heard a loud rumble and Naruto yell. He opened his eyes and saw that the ground in front of him was crumbled and broken, and Naruto was staring at him concerned. In Naruto's sea blue eyes, Sasuke could see that his own eyes held the Sharingan.

"Perhaps you should leave him be, Naruto" Kakashi suggested from afar. Naruto reluctantly nodded and walked to stand with Kakashi.

"I wonder what's got him so riled up today…" Naruto murmured to Kakashi. Kakashi stood silently, watching Sasuke.

Sasuke growled and closed his eyes. He wished that sometimes he could just escape all thought. That would make things better.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hooray for fast updates ^_^ I hope you enjoy this chapter; please take the time to review and leave your thoughts :) I appreciate your support! ~~Anbu-Chan**

_DISCLAIMER!: I do not own Naruto.  
_  
"Okay!" Sakura exclaimed, dropping a heavy box in the middle of the living room. Her hair was tangled and her face was bright red as she stretched her throbbing arms. Her and Sasori had been moving boxes into the new house for the past twenty minutes. Sasori said he could've handled the boxes himself, but Sakura insisted that she help. Sasori could've used his vampire speed, but Sakura didn't want to feel useless. "We're done!"

"We are," Sasori said, lightly placing the last box beside the one Sakura had set down.

Sakura looked out the window at the dark street, not a soul walked by. Sasori received word earlier in the previous day that he had to meet the Akatsuki at the Rainbow bridge at six in the morning. Since Konoha was a good four hours away from Sakura and Sasori's previous home, they had to pack up the car and set out for Konoha soon after they were given the information. This meant that they would arrive at Konoha at the early hours of the morning, in the dark of night.

Sakura yawned hugely, rubbing her eyes. Sasori picked her up bridal style, making her laugh. "You should go back to sleep."

Sakura looked at him blankly, "But that means that when I wake up you'll be gone."

Sasori was carrying her up the stairs, looking at her. "Then we can just talk for a while until I have to leave."

Sakura nodded meekly, burying her head in Sasori's shoulder. They arrived in Sakura's new bedroom and lay down on the bed, facing each other. They lay there for a while, just talking. Knowing that their final moments were approaching.

Sasori shifted, meaning to sit up, when Sakura grabbed his arm. "Don't go," She said, panic in her voice. Looking into her eyes, Sasori could see that paranoia and anxiety was rising up in her. Sasori sighed and pulled her into his lap, hugging her tightly. "I love you," He told her, kissing her lightly. "And I'm sorry." Sakura never got the chance to ask him what he was sorry for because he hit a pressure point, making her pass out.

He set her down on the bed again and pulled a blanket around her. Walking to the door he turned around and looked at her for one last time. Regret made his heart ache; he did not want to go. Clenching his fists tightly, Sasori turned around and walked out the door and then out of the house, leaving his old life behind. Leaving Sakura behind. He would be back, but who knows what would be different by then?

Goodbye, he thought. Envy stung his heart; he knew very well what would happen while he was away.

Sakura woke up to an empty bed, no warmth beside her. She stared blankly at the ceiling, not sure how to react. Should she cry? She'd done quite a bit of that already. So instead Sakura decided to get up and try not to feel at all. She went downstairs and saw all of the boxes that needed unpacking; at least she would have something to do to occupy herself.

Sakura began with the boxes labeled "Kitchen", carrying them all to the kitchen and placing them on the countertops. She was kneeling on the ground, placing pots and pans in the cupboards closer to the floor, when there was a knock on the door.

"Who would that be?" Sakura muttered, becoming agitated. Right now was not the time that she wanted company; she wanted to be alone to mourn in solitude.

She walked to the door and looked through the peephole; she didn't want to start her first day here with opening the door to a bulky man who would rape and kidnap her. That would Sakura's far more sour to say the least. But there was no bulky man on the other side of the door, but rather a girl who looked to be about Sakura's age. Sakura opened the door and was met by the bright smile of a girl with blond hair in a high pony tail and sparkling blue eyes.

"Hello! My name is Ino Yamanaka," The girl began enthusiastically. "I live in this apartment complex too, and I couldn't help but notice that you had moved in already. I saw the place mat outside the door, and it wasn't there before so I assume you moved in very recently. I wanted to welcome you to Konoha!"

"Hi," Sakura forced a smile on her face. "My name is Sakura Haruno. Thank you for the welcome." She wasn't sure what else to say to this exuberant girl.

"Do you need help with anything? Any unpacking assistance?" Ino inquired, seeming like she genuinely wanted to help Sakura.

Sakura thought about it for a moment and then decided that it wouldn't hurt to have a little help. Maybe Sakura could even befriend this girl. "Sure, I could use some help."

Ino walked into Sakura's home and her eyes widened. "You have so many boxes! Are you living here alone, is there another person to help?"

"Uh, I'm actually living by myself," Sakura told her. "Yea…I guess I do have a lot of stuff." Sakura couldn't bear to part with many of the things at her and Sasori's old home, so she's packed a lot of them.

"I could call some of my friends," Ino suggested. "That way we could get this done faster and you would meet more people. They're nice, I promise."

"Yea…sure." Sakura did not see the harm of having more people. At first she had thought that she wanted to mourn in solitude, but from the moment she saw Ino she decided that she would rather busy herself with new friends.

"Okay, just give me one second to call them," Ino said. She walked into the kitchen and pulled out her phone, dialing two different numbers. In less than five minutes Ino came back out into the small parlor where Sakura was still standing. "They will be here in a few minutes! We could start on the kitchen, though, if you want."

Sakura nodded and followed Ino back into the kitchen. Ino seemed like a nice girl; so enthusiastic and cheerful. She wore ripped shorts, purple sequined spaghetti strapped tank top, and purple flip flops. Sakura looked down at her black exercise shorts and tight red t-shirt, thinking that maybe she should change into something more suitable. Later, she decided. She was just unpacking now.

A little while later there was another knock on the front door. Ino hopped up from her place on the ground and skipped to the door, opening it wide. A girl with brown hair in two buns poked her head in, her brown eyes searching. Sakura came around the corner and saw her and another girl with long black hair and pretty white eyes standing in the doorway.

"Do you mind if we come in?" The one with brown buns asked sweetly. Sakura nodded and the duo stepped into the house, admiring its beauty.

"Thank you," Sakura replied to all of their compliments. "My name is Sakura Haruno. I appreciate you coming over to help me unpack."

"No problem! My name is Tenten," The girl with brown hair responded. She shook hands with Sakura, giving her a happy smile.

"It's my pleasure to help you out, Sakura," The girl with black hair replied timidly. "My name is Hinata Hyuga." She followed Tenten's lead and shook hands with Sakura, although a lot less firm.

Without further discussion the four girls proceeded to unpack the rest of Sakura's house. Ino, Hinata, and Tenten chatted easily with each other, but Sakura unpacked in silence. What could she say to these girls anyway? She was just thinking that she should really be trying to join in the conversation with the others when she was saved the effort by Ino.

"So where did you live before here, Sakura?" Ino inquired.

"I lived in a big house in the middle of the forest; we could walk to different villages through the woods. I went to school in the Rain village."

"Who is 'we'?" Tenten wondered aloud, looking around. "I thought you lived alone…?"

Sakura focused her attention on organizing her bookshelf when she responded, "I lived in a house with my boyfriend. He had to go away for…work; so I moved here."

"You lived with your boyfriend?" Ino exclaimed, looking surprised.

Sakura laughed softly; if her classmates in the Rain village had known that her and Sasori lived together, they would have had the very same reaction. "My parents were killed when I was younger, and Sasori found me in the woods. He took me in and we've been living together ever since."

"That's so nice of him," Hinata said. "Does he not have any parents either? How old is he?"

"Ah, his parents are also gone. He is three years older than me, so he is now 19," Sakura told her.

"You're the same age as us!" Tenten smiled. "Are you going to be a junior?"

Sakura nodded and Ino broke out into claps and cheers, "Yes! I hope you'll have some classes with me! What did you sign up for?"

"Um…Let me go get the paper with the classes on it," Sakura said, stepping away from the bookshelf and walking over to the dresser. She picked up the sheet of paper with her class schedule. School started in less than two weeks so Sakura received her schedule soon after enrolling. She read the list aloud.

1st Hour: AP English Literature

2nd Hour: Advanced Algebra 2

3rd Hour: Honors Chemistry

4th Hour: Economics

5th Hour: French 4

6th Hour: Art

In the end it turned out that Sakura had math, economics, and art with Ino; with Tenten she had math, science, and art; and with Hinata she had English, French, and art. Sakura smiled wanly, happy that she had a person that she knew in every class. Maybe this year wouldn't be entirely bad.

"Phew! Are we done?" Ino asked, arching her back to stretch. Sakura examined the rooms, satisfied that all of the boxes were now unpacked. Sakura felt grateful that Ino, Hinata, and Tenten had come to help because if Sakura had been alone, she would have taken much longer and probably would have been bored to death and sadder than she was.

"Do you want to go grab a bite to eat?" Tenten suggested, looking at Sakura for approval. Sakura nodded, excusing herself for a moment to change into more public-suitable clothes. When Sakura returned, Ino whistled.

"Damn, sexy! I love your outfit."

Sakura looked down at her soft pink jean shorts, black tank top with pink lace on the neckline, and choker necklace with a decent sized pink flower on it. Sakura's hair was in waves as usual, and if she were to be honest with herself, Sakura felt good with how she looked and was excited to go out to lunch with these three girls.

The group left Sakura's house to search Konoha for a place to eat. Once again Sakura was able to admire the architecture of Konoha and admire its population. The streets were so busy for lunch time, and Sakura saw all sorts of people out and about.

"What were you guys thinking for lunch?" Sakura asked. Looking at all these food places, Sakura had no idea what she would choose if given the choice.

"Do you like ramen?" Hinata asked Sakura quietly. When Sakura looked at Hinata, she saw that Hinata was shyly looking at the ground. Sakura smiled and nodded her approval. "Then…how about the Ichiraku ramen shop?"

Tenten snorted, "Fine with me. But we all know that you really just want to go there because Naruto is always there."

"That's not true!" Hinata protested indignantly, but the blush on her cheeks gave her away. "I happen to like ramen…"

"A match made in heaven," Ino teased, laughing when Hinata's face turned redder.

"Ah, stop teasing her, you guys," Sakura demanded, putting a hand on Hinata's shoulder. "It's okay, we'll go to the ramen shop."

Hinata gave a small smile and lead them in the direction of the Ichiraku ramen shop. On the way there, Ino squealed and ran forward into a crowded part of the street.

"Where did she run off to now?" Tenten sighed, exasperated.

Ino reappeared dragging a guy with pineapple hair and a bored expression on his face. "Sakura! I want to introduce you; this is my boyfriend, Shikamaru Nara!" Sakura greeted him politely while he simply raised his hand in greeting. A few more boys emerged from the throng of people; a man with brown spikey hair and a small dog, a man with long brown hair and eyes that resembled Hinata's, a guy with a black, bowl-cut hairdo and round eyes, and a chubby guy with brown hair holding a bag of chips, munching happily.

"Hey, Hinata! Where ya guys going?" The man with the dog asked.

"Hi, Kiba," Hinata responded. "We're going to the ramen shop…"

Sakura noticed that the man who had the same eyes as Hinata gave Hinata a sharp look. Sakura looked between the two curiously, noticing that Hinata averted her eyes nervously.

The man eating the bag of chips perked up, saying, "I like ramen. Can we join you? I love food…"

Ino rolled her eyes, "Fine, Choji. But when you die one day of a heart attack, don't say that I didn't warn you that you should eat better."

"If he were dead of a heart attack, he wouldn't be saying anything," Shikamaru pointed out lazily. Ino gave him a deadly look, beginning to lecture him on how he shouldn't go against her in any way. Shikamaru looked bored and simply stared at the sky, watching the clouds.

"Oh, S-Sakura, it's rude of me not to introduce you…This is my cousin, Neji Hyuga," Hinata said timidly, obviously trying to get Neji's gaze off of her.

Neji spared her by looking at Sakura, saying, "It's a pleasure to meet you. When did you move to Konoha?"

"Earlier today," Sakura responded, intimidated by his intense gaze that seemed to look through her.

"We helped her unpack a little bit ago," Tenten said. Sakura looked at her and saw that she was blushing when she looked at Neji. Neji turned his attention to Tenten and something in his expression changed. Tenten and Neji began having a conversation as Ino was still blabbering at Shikamaru, Choji munched on his chips, and Hinata looked anywhere but at Neji.

"I am afraid that I have failed to introduce myself properly," The man with a bowl-like haircut said, stepping forward and taking hold of Sakura's hand. "My name is Rock Lee, and you are the finest woman I have ever laid my eyes on."

Sakura's eye twitched as this very…odd guy held her hand and gazed at her so intensely. "Oh, hello…I'm Sakura. Thank you for your compliment."

"You are more beautiful than the first flower of spring; so much more beautiful than any sunset I have ever seen," Lee continued. Sakura could practically see hearts forming in those round eyes of his.

"Lee! Leave Sakura alone!" Ino yelled, smacking him on the head. "Sorry about that, Sakura. Lee seems to be very…infatuated with you. Do you usually make this kind of impression on guys?"

"Oh, it's fine… Let's just continue to the ramen shop."

The now larger group of teens walked a short distance when they arrived at the ramen shop. When they entered the shop, there were very few people. In the far corner sat a group of three guys; Sakura could see that one had spikey blond hair and blue eyes, the other had silver hair with a bandage over his right eye and a cloth covering his mouth. She could only see the back of the other guy; he had deep black hair that's shape resembled a chicken's butt. He had broad shoulders and even from behind he gave an air of confidence. Sakura felt as if she remembered seeing him somewhere, but she couldn't place where.

"Heyyy, Hinata!" The blond yelled obnoxiously, waving his hands ecstatically. "How are you?"

"Oh, I-I'm great, Naruto—"

"Do not speak to him," Neji intervened immediately. His glared ice cold daggers at Naruto and Naruto glared back.

"Hey, hey, hey," Sakura spoke up angrily. "Don't tell her what to do like that, Neji. This isn't the 1800s, women have rights now and you have no right to infringe on Hinata's like that!"

"And you don't have to butt in," Neji told her coldly, not taking his eyes off of Naruto.

"Let's just simmer down, guys," Tenten laughed nervously, holding her hands up. "How about we just eat, okay?"

"Fine," The darkness radiating off of Neji was terrifying and Sakura had no desire to sit by him. He stalked up to the cook and even seemed to frighten the cook with his menacing aura. Neji placed his order and proceeding to the opposite side of the restaurant than Naruto and his two companions.

When Sakura was in line her gaze kept drifting to the raven haired man. From what she could see, he was very sexy and she felt a pull that told her she wanted to know more about him. But she'd already met new friends today, and based on the encounter between Neji, Hinata, and Naruto…she assumed that she probably did not want to befriend Naruto and his companions. If Neji was ordering Hinata, his cousin, not to talk to Naruto, there must be a reason, right? Although what the reason was, Sakura could not guess.

Sakura stepped up and was placing her order when she felt eyes on her. She turned her head to the left and saw that the raven haired man was staring at her intently. For a moment Sakura could not tear her gaze away, but then she realized that she was staring too. Her face turned bright red and she ripped her stare away and finished her order, stuttering the entire time. She rushed over to the table where her new friends sat and sat down so her back was to the raven haired man. She did not want to talk to him.

"Oh, Sakura, please give me the great honor of sitting beside you during this meal!" Lee begged, coming up behind Sakura. Sakura looked at him, not sure if she should accept his request. There was no way she would ever go for him, seeing as she had Sasori, and she saw no point in being rude, so she agreed.

"Lee!" Tenten exclaimed, exasperated. "Please, stop staring! She has a boyfriend, you buffoon!"

When Sakura met Lee's eyes, she could see the disappoint in them. "Do you really, Sakura?"

"Yes, he's away for work!" Ino told Lee. "So bug off."

"Well then he is a very lucky man, to have you. If you ever need a shoulder to cry on, I will eagerly be awaiting to help you." Instead of seeing sadness in Lee's eyes, Sakura now saw determination. Fantastic, she thought.

"So you're living alone right now, Sakura? How long will your boyfriend be away for work?" Kiba asked curiously, giving some of his ramen to his dog, whose name Sakura discovered was Akamaru.

"He will be away for two years, although the man who came to recruit him said that he would probably be gone for even longer than that…" Sakura stared down at the table sadly, not wanting to meet the pitying gazes of any of her new friends.

"Two years?" Ino yelped. "That's such a long time…Will you be able to talk?"

Sakura shook her head. No, she would not be able to contact Sasori as far as she knew.

"Then…how will you two be together?" Tenten wondered. "Without any contact for two years, will you really still be together? I mean, in my opinion, by that point you two should just be friends or something. He expects you to be alone for two years, suffering?"

"I will be alone for two years," Sakura said firmly. "I will wait for him…" Although the thought of being alone for two years was far from comforting.

"That's sweet," Ino cooed. "Although, I would never be able to do that. Sorry, Shikamaru." Ino gave Shikamaru a sheepish smile.

Shikamaru shrugged, "It's okay, I understand. It would be troublesome anyway."

"Is that a tattoo, Sakura?" Lee inquired, gesturing to Sakura's left wrist.

Sakura looked down at her purple swirling tattoo. Her reminder of Sasori that would soon fade. "Oh, yea. It's a temporary one."

Sakura missed the exchange of looks between Lee, Neji, and Tenten. Kiba scoffed and Shikamaru grunted; no one said anything for a moment.

"Well, it's very pretty!" Ino complimented, admiring Sakura's wrist. Sakura smiled and thanked her.

* * *

So the girl, Sakura, was marked by another vampire. Sasuke could already tell by the slight alteration of her aura, but the mentioning of her tattoo completely confirmed his thoughts. According to her comment that her tattoo was temporary, she hadn't been marked that long ago.

Sasuke, Naruto, and Kakashi left the ramen shop in silence. When they were away from the shop, Naruto started loudly complaining how much he hated the Hyugas' interference with his plans to get closer to Hinata.

"It's just not fair at all," Naruto grumbled, pouting.

"Well, at least it gives you a challenge. If she truly is your mate, she will be worth fighting for," Kakashi insightfully said.

"That girl with the pink hair was pretty," Naruto commented, looking at Sasuke. He had noticed the way that Sasuke got a little bit tense when they all came in, and then his stare at the pink haired girl when she was in line to order her ramen. Naruto wondered what his infatuation was.

"She was marked by another vampire," Kakashi stated. "But according to her, he is away for a long period of time. I wonder what business he has that would take him away for two years?"

"I cannot be certain, but I think that he is part of the Akatsuki," Sasuke said simply.

"What makes you say that?" Kakashi asked, looking at Sasuke's blank expression.

"I overheard Itachi saying that the Akatsuki members had to go on a dangerous mission for two years."

"That doesn't necessarily mean that he is in the Akatsuki though. A lot of people have to leave for a long time for their jobs," Naruto pointed out.

No matter where Sakura's boyfriend was, his claim on her would fade soon. Sasuke was more intrigued by this girl that he would ever admit, but he shoved his interest to the back corner of his mind. He knew that he had to find a mate within the next year or two, and he knew that his parents would be furious if he chose a human girl. So before Sasuke could become attached, he decided that he would turn away now.

No sense in wanting something he couldn't and shouldn't have.

* * *

Ino walked with Sakura back to their apartment complex after a long day of hanging out with their friends. Sakura admired the group; she admitted that she had a wonderful time with all of them.

"So what was up with Neji telling Hinata not to talk to Naruto earlier?" Sakura asked Ino, hoping that she knew.

"All I know is that Neji is from a well-known family and so is Naruto, so the only thing that I can assume is that the families have some sort of rivalry," Ino shrugged. "But I think that Naruto and Hinata would be such a cute couple…too bad that there must be some sort of rivalry."

"And who were the other two with Naruto?" Sakura asked about both of them, but really she was only concerned about the raven haired guy. She'd said that she didn't want to get to know him, but the curiosity was killing her.

"The one with silver hair is Kakashi Hatake, and the sexy one with black hair is Sasuke Uchiha," Ino sighed dreamily. "All three of them are very sexy. Naruto is the most social of the three; he is in the same grade as us and talks to a lot of people. Kakashi graduated two years ago, but he still hangs around because he's friends with Naruto and Sasuke; the girls love him because obviously he's hot, and he's a little older. And Sasuke…phew, he has the biggest fan club. He is like the epitome of hotness; he doesn't socialize very much, which makes him a bit mysterious and totally appealing. I have Shikamaru, but I would so date Sasuke."

Sakura nodded, absorbing this information.

"I saw Sasuke looking at you when you were in line," Ino commented, looking at Sakura to see her reaction. Sakura had the faintest blush cross her cheeks; she was hoping no one else had noticed.

"Yea," Sakura agreed. "But I have Sasori…"

Ino laughed, "I know." She arrived at Sakura's door and smiled at her. "I'll see you tomorrow."

When Ino was walking away, Sakura heard her mumble, "I wonder how long you'll last without Sasori when you're getting attention from Sasuke…"

Sakura pretended not to hear her and simply went into her home. After doing her nightly rituals she went into her bedroom and laid in bed, staring at the ceiling. She went to sleep thinking of Sasori.

How would she last these two years?

Painfully, perhaps.


End file.
